Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1887-04-06


so loud and unexpected that the aston
ished ruffians remained motionless for
an instant A white form, with long
blonde hair streaming in the wind,
bounded through the cabin door, and
rushing upon the captains assailant,
caught the knife before It could de-
scend- Terror-stricken, the supersti-
tious men fell back. Before the sur
prise was over. the other officers ran
up from below. and the mutineers were
soon cowed and driven off the quarter
deck. The woman was the captains
wife. The men did not know that she
was on board; so her sudden appear
ance and brave defense of her husband
had made them waver at the time
when success depended upon imme-
date action.
After this there were no more open
acts of mutiny; but the crew worked
with a sullenness which showed that
the fire Of discomfort was not quenched,
but smoldering. One trifling cause
served to foment the bitter feeling be-
tween men and officers; which, under
different circumstances, would have
been considered only joke.
The mate had parrot, which was
given the freedom of the decks when
the ship had run down. into warm
weather. During the previous home
ward voyage this bird had learned to
repeat some of the most common
orders. Until the new crew learned to
distinguish the officers voices from the
imitation, they were frequently sent
aloft to loose sail, or called aft to the
braces, by the mischievous bird, much
to the annoyance of the mates and the
anger of the men. Finally, just as the
master had made up his mind to have
the parrot kept below decks, it disap-
peared. The mate never discovered
how, but, of course, he believed the
men had killed and thrown it over
board.
The man whom the captain wounded
recovered slowly from the wound,
having for some time high fever He
was taken aft and cared for, with great
kindness, by the captain and his wife,
despite the fact that he had been the
leader in the mutiny. When he re-
turned to his bunk in the forecastle, he
had been completely won by the treat
ment received from the man he had
sought to kill. He therefore exerted
his influence in the interests Of peace;
but the breach between the men and
officers had been constantly widening
during his illness, and wa' now too
great to be closed by any ordinary
measures.
The master was well aware of the
INSTRUMENTATION among the crew, and
began to consider the wisdom of aban-
doning his gentle measures and put
ting the ringleaders in irons. He en-
joined upon his officers extra watchful-
ness and firmness, but distinctly for
babe any bullying or hazing. This was
just before the ship crossed the line.
One evening the ship was struck by
"white squalr'-one of those marine
tornadoes which cause the loss of many
fine ships. The night bao that sur
passing beauty which makes the tropics
so delightful. Sky and sea were near
ly the same shade of clear, soft blue,
separated by white, tilmy haze hiding
the horizon. The stars of the South
ern hemisphere shone overhead with a
brilliancy seldom seen in northern lat
itudes. The crests of the waves
CLEANED with phosphoresccnt light
against the dark background of the sea.
Rising in quick succession, they made
running leaps up the smooth side of
the ship, falling back again with a mu-
steal murmur, down over the copper
sheathing.
The breeze was only fresh enough to
gently incline the deck of the ship, and
the officer of the watch leaned against
the taffrail, looking at the swelling
canvas towering above him in three
snowy pyramids crossed at intervals
by the black yards, which stuck out
from the taut wheather-lecches of the
sails, like spines in the dorsal fin of a
fish; or, dropping his eyes, he watched
the jelly-fsh floating by, glowing with
phosphorescent light, red, blue, green
and yellow, in such numbers that he
amused himself by fancying the mer-
maids were having dance by the light
of Chinese lantcrs.
Presently a little rattle of the canvas
recalled him from his thou ghts, and
raising his head with warning mo
highcr!' to the hclmsman, he noticed
the white haze on the weather horizon
was slowly spreading upward. The
low stars grew gradually paler, then
vanished; and the bolt I'M of tie haz,,
instead of merging gradually into the
deep blue OF the sea, had changed to a
distinct white line, which needed but
little watching to show it was rapidly
coming nearer.
The practced eye of the officer took
in the situation at a glance, and, run
ming to the break Of the quarterback,
he shouted: 'Clew up the royals"
Haul down the staysails and jib-top-
sail;" "Call the watch below"
The man sprang to the clew-lines
and down-hauls. The tops of the three
pyramids of sail faded away, giving a
few indignant slaps, and the staysails
ran down with hoarsc rattle of the
iron hanks. Before the gear could be
hauled snugly home, the squall struck
the ship with force that made her
reel; throwing her almost upon her
beam-ends, and half burying her amid
the swirling foam.
Let go every thing!" yelled the
N. A otor In o.,..,,,l,loJ $50 from. III.